Letters
by reppad98
Summary: About Regulus and Sirius. One-shot. My entry for Round 11 on the Quidditch League Fanfiction Competion forum.


**A/N:** Thank you for clicking on this story! Please enjoy!

This story was written for Round 11 on the Quidditch League Fanfiction Competion forum. The challenge was to write a story about pureblood siblings, between 1000 and 3000 words and rated between K and T. So... here it is, about Sirius and Regulus :)

**Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter.**

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**Letters**

_You've chosen your side, and I've chosen mine._

_But you'll always be my brother._

The parchment was crumbled and torn at the edges, and many times Regulus had been about to throw in the fire, but every time he had pulled his hand back and had pushed the letter back in his pocket.

It was the last letter he had gotten from Sirius. He had looked at it many times, wondering if it was true, often angrily asking himself if he would always be stuck with that bloodtraitor as his brother.

And in the back of his mind, he had also wondered why he hadn't thrown it away yet, why he had kept is as a filthy reminder of what his brother had become.

But now he knew. He had kept it because of the same reason he had acted on during that fight. That fight... Ever since that fight it felt like his world had been thrown upside down, that everything he had believed to be true wasn't true anymore.

It should've been so simple. He had been standing in front of a defenceless bloodtraitor, his wand had been raised, ready to cast the killing curse, when Regulus saw it wasn't a bloodtraitor.

It was Sirius. His brother.

And he hadn't been able to speak the words. Instead he had just looked away and lowered his wand, giving Sirius a very obvious opportunity to flee. An opportunity he had taken, because when Regulus had looked up again, his brother was gone.

Even since that incident, Regulus had found his world upside down. All the things he had thought to be true seemed to be questionable now, and he kept asking himself the same questions, without getting any answers.

Why hadn't he killed Sirius, or rather, why had he let Sirius go? Was it weakness? Was it his way of paying Sirius back, for all the times his older brother had taken the blame so he wouldn't be punished by their parents? Was he maybe bewitched?

Or was it something else? Had he let Sirius go _because_ he was his brother? But he had sworn that he would never think of that bloodtraitor as family anymore, so what was he doing now?

But was it really that easy, he mused, was it really that easy to disconnect yourself from family? It couldn't be that easy, right? But that would mean... that the Dark Lord was wrong.

Regulus called his thoughts to a halt. The Dark Lord couldn't be wrong. That just couldn't be true. Because that would mean that maybe he had chosen the wrong side and that, that just... no.

No. Just no, he decided. But for the first time since he had joined the Deatheaters, doubt was starting to creep in his mind.

Again, Regulus stared at the letter, as if it would hold all the answers. The longer he stared at it, the more memories he had thought to be forgotten came back to him. One memory in particular, one he remembered very clearly, stood out most against his other hazy thoughts.

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With pure excitement Regulus stared at the envelope in the hands of his father. He had been allowed to stay up later, just to see this letter. Ever since dinner he had been looking out of the window, to see if there was already an owl in sight.

And now, finally, the letter was here. The first letter from Sirius.

Sitting on the edge of his seat, Regulus watched how his father opened the envelope and pulled out the letter. His father gave his mother a rare smile as he folded it open, and holding his breath, Regulus waited eagerly for his father to start reading.

"Dear father and mother," his father started reading the letter out loud, after clearing his throat. He immediately felt disappointment hit – why hadn't his brother mentioned him?

"I am in Gryff-" his father stopped reading, the smile completely disappeared from his face. The look on his mother's face didn't promise much goods either, and Regulus knew exactly why.

Gryffindor. Sirius was in Gryffindor. Sirius Black. Blacks were Slytherins. And now Sirius was in Gryffindor.

Regulus cringed when his mother yelled at his father that it was all his fault, that he had 'infected the boy with his liberal attitude.' His father yelled just as loud back that it must be her fault, considering she was no real Black, so it must be from her side of the family.

In all the commotion, Regulus slipped from the room quietly, not sure how to feel about it. He hated it when his parents fought, but he was used to it.

He locked the door from his room and tried to ignore the yelling and occasional shattering sounds coming from downstairs. It was so loud that Regulus almost missed the soft tapping sound.

An owl! The dark-haired boy immediately jumped up from his bed and hurried to the window. He let in the owl, which he immediately recognized as Sirius's, and found there was a letter strapped to its paw.

_Regulus Black_ was written on it in the handwriting Regulus had gotten to know so well. Without further thinking, he ripped the envelope open and unfolded the letter.

_Dear Regulus,_

_By now you've probably found out I'm sorted in Gryffindor, and I hope mother and father didn't get too angry about it._

_Who am I kidding? They're fighting downstairs, aren't they? Sorry that you have to deal with them now, all alone._

_I don't mind being in Gryffindor. You know I never wanted to be in Slytherin anyway. And I already made some friends too._

_I hope you aren't too bothered by it that I'm in Gryffindor. Please let me know something._

_Your big brother,_

_Sirius_

For a few more minutes Regulus stared at the letter, weighing his options. Side with his parents and get angry at Sirius for being a Gryffindor? But it wasn't his fault, the Sorting Hat decided. Plus if Sirius wanted to be in Gryffindor...

In one swift moment, Regulus grabbed some parchment and his quill, and quickly scribbled a reply.

_Dear Sirius,_

_Of course I don't mind. And I can handle mother and father. They were indeed not happy. But they'll get over it. You're still a Black after all, Gryffindor or Slytherin, it doesn't change much. I think so at least._

_Have fun at Hogwarts!_

_Always your little brother,_

_Regulus_

After tying this letter to the owl's paw, he urged the owl out of his room, too scared that his parents would find out if he let the bird stay too long.

With relief Regulus found that the yelling downstairs had ceased, and after closing the window, the boy got ready for bed. He didn't expect his parents to come check on him (or to come say goodnight for that matter, but Regulus rather ignored that fact), but he'd better be in bed if they did come.

The house was quiet, downstairs only the soft scurrying of the house elves was heard, and Regulus was almost asleep, when he was pulled out of his slumber by a tapping on the window.

He grumbled and turned around, wanting to go back to whatever dream he had been dreaming, but when he heard the tapping again, he flew up, suddenly realizing that it was an owl. And an owl meant a letter. And the only one who would send him a letter at this time, was...

The boy didn't bother to look at the envelope, just ripped it open to read the letter.

_Reg, are you crazy? You're telling me to have fun at a school? Fun? At school?! _

_Hah, what I need now is good luck. I swear, that one professor, McGonagall was her name I believe, already dislikes me. And I haven't even done anything yet! _

_Anyway, I have to go, I'll tell you more later, James (one of my fellow Gryffindors) wants to sleep. He's a wimp, I can tell you that already. I'll write you tomorrow again Reg, good luck with the parents!_

Regulus smiled as he hid the letter under his pillow, and soon he was asleep again, the smile still on his face.

* * *

That decision he had made that night... hadn't he chosen sides back then already?

With wide eyes of realization he stared at the letter without seeing it, as his mind raced with all the thoughts he had managed to suppress and ignore for so long.

Because indeed, Sirius's letter was true, as Sirius had chosen a side, and he had chosen a side.

But he had made the wrong choice.

On the letter, that had been crumbled and folded so many times, that had been hidden in his pocket for so long, on that letter fell now the first tear.

It would be the first of many.

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**A/N:** Thank you very much for reading, I hope you enjoyed it :) Please leave me a review!  
Thanks again!


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